Disney+ is now live, meaning that if you happen to be reading in the US, Canada or The Netherlands, you can sign-up and feast on the mass of content that Disney will be offering.

With rights covering Disney's programming, Star Wars and Marvel, to name a few, there's no shortage of content for you to get to grips with. The launch comes hot on the heels of 2019's other big streaming service debut, Apple TV+, which has also just opened its doors. 

The stark contrast between these two services is where you'll be able to access it. Apple, in a refreshing but uncharacteristic move, has not only made the service available in a wide range of territories, but on a wide range of platforms too. Whether there's anything you want to watch is a different matter.

Disney+, on the other hand, is in the polar opposite position: it has lots of content that people want to watch, but lots of people can't get to it. While the US is a massive subscriber base, there are a lot of regions that will have to wait to get access. 

For some of the content that doesn't matter - we can all watch that old Disney classic on the DVD that we're all still hanging onto - but the headline Star Wars show, The Mandalorian, is a different matter. It's expected that The Mandalorian will leap to the top of the most pirated charts, because so many people won't be able to get access to it via a legitimate route.

So why does the UK have to wait until 31 March 2020 to be able to access the service? It's believed that it comes down to existing agreements with Sky. As broken down by Film Stories, it's probably due to existing deals with Sky for Disney content. 

So what can you do to access the content when you're not in the right territory? Some are suggesting that a VPN might be the answer (although you'll have to have a local method of payment, presumably) or the other option will probably be piracy, something we can't condone.

Or it may well be that you have to sit and wait until 31 March 2020, soaking up the spoilers and looking at the merchandise Disney is trying to sell you. But look on the bright side: at least you can give Apple's The Morning Show a try while you wait.